It’s been a while since I wrote a mental health piece — but I think it’s important to occasionally stop, take a breather, and think about how we feel.

So.

deep breath

I’m okay, I think? Just a little restless.

A bit of personal context

For those keeping score, I went through major life events in 2023 — a divorce, a move, and the news that I might need a second round of jaw surgery.

In April of 2012, I wrote a few paragraphs about suicide.

I still get regular e-mails about it, from folks who are currently struggling. They often ask if I’ve written anything else about the subject. They often thank me for writing it, or say it helped them in some way.

It’s been over 6 years since I wrote this article, and a lot has happened since. Maybe it’s time I write about this again.

I didn’t really know what to do for “World Suicide Prevention Day 2014”.

First off, I didn’t know it existed at all. Like, c’mon, know your audience, if you have a party like that, I want in!

Second, it’s a terrible name: I hereby propose “stay with us day” in place. Nevermind the “world” part because, hey, we’re on the internet, the “suicide” part because, well, avoiding that is just the very start of a long uphill battle, and let’s keep the “day” part because, honest, if we can attract people’s attention for even a single day per year, it’ll be nothing short of a miracle.